This paper explores identity and the recursive impacts of cross-cultural colonial encounters on individuals, cultural materials, and cultural practices in 20th-century northern Australia. We focus on an assemblage of cached metal objects and associated cultural materials that embody both Aboriginal tradition and innovation. These cultural materials were wrapped in paperbark and placed within a ring of stones, a bundling practice also seen in human burials in this region. This ‘cache' is located in close proximity to rockshelters with rich, superimposed Aboriginal rock art compositions. However, the cache shelter has no visible art, despite available wall space. The site shows the utilisation of metal objects as new raw materials that use traditional techniques to manufacture a ground edge metal axe and to sharpen metal rods into spears. We contextualise these objects and their hypothesised owner(s) within narratives of invasion/contact and the ensuing pastoral history of this region. Assemblage theory affords us an appropriate theoretical lens through which to bring people, places, objects, and time into conversation.

本文探讨了20世纪北澳大利亚跨文化殖民遭遇对个人，文化材料和文化习俗的认同和递归影响。我们专注于体现原住民传统和创新的金属物件和相关文化材料的组合。这些文化材料被包裹在纸皮中，并置于一圈石块中，这种做法在该地区的人类墓葬中也见过。这个“藏宝室”紧邻拥有丰富，叠加的原住民岩石艺术作品的石棚。但是，尽管有可用的墙面空间，但该藏书柜没有可见的艺术品。该站点显示了金属物体作为新原材料的利用，这些原材料使用传统技术制造了地面边缘的金属斧，并将金属棒磨成矛。我们将这些对象及其假设的所有者与入侵/接触的叙述以及随后该地区的牧民历史联系起来。集合理论为我们提供了一个合适的理论视角，通过它可以使人，地方，物体和时间进行对话。